About this time last year we started building a new chicken house.

When our grandsons came to stay for the summer and took over the little house
We didn't have the heart to kick them out so we let it be theirs for the summer.
They had so much fun 'finishing' it.
We gave them a couple of hammers, a bucket of nails and lots of odd bits of wood.
They found some old mettle roofing laying around that they added to the roof with the help of their dad. They had chairs and a set of old TV trays in there. they added the floor using an old door and the bigger pieces of wood that they had. They collected moss and lined the window ledge with it.
They had grand adventures happening in the 'forest' that surrounds the little house.

We decided yesterday that we better start dismantling their hard work and get busy finishing it into the chicken house before the boys are back to claim it for another summer.
Maybe this year we will start a tree house for them ...

Remember the very pregnant sheep?











She had twin boys on Wednesday.
that's me holding them on Thursday.
They are just darling little things.

These little guys will be kept for their fleece or breeding, rather than ending up in the freezer.
They are Shetland sheep and I have been told their fleece is wonderfully soft.
There is another ewe who is also ready to lamb any day now.

Its probably a good thing that we don't have pasture or I would probably be begging Rob to let me keep one ..!

Our Greyhound Sam loves to smile.

This is what most people get greeted
with when they come to visit!

We had to take our goat Becky to the vet on Saturday.
She had been limping for about 5 days. I tipped her over and checked her hoof to see if anything was in there bothering her but saw nothing.
I looked again on Saturday and saw a nasty looking infected cut.
The closest farm animal vet to us is in Duncan so we put her in the van and drove her there. The cost would have been doubled if the vet had to come to us.
He cleaned and treated the wound and gave her a shot of penicillin. He gave me a bottle of penicillin 5 needles and showed me where and how to give her the shot!
I was a little apprehensive to say the least as I have never given an injection before but I gave her the first one yesterday and it wasn't anywhere near as bad as I thought it would be.

My granddaughter and I went to visit a friend yesterday. She is the lady that I got my goats from, we stayed in touch and have become friends since then.
I love going to visit. She has goats, cows, chickens, rabbits, a pony and three sheep.
Two of her sheep are ready to lamb any day now.
The other sheep, I am sure thinks it is a dog.
It follows Marylou around and 'paws' at her for attention. It is cute watching her trying to get Marylou to give in and give her a few raisins that she knows are in her pocket.
I took a few pictures while I was there. Notice the tiny little legs on a very pregnant sheep!

I have been given some very nice alpaca fleece for spinning. It is from the same lady that gave me some last year.
Last year I was very new to spinning and knew next to nothing about different types of fleece.
I was so pleased to get what she gave me last year, I spent many long hours cleaning it and sorting it as best I knew how before being able to card and spin it.
This year however, I am a little bit wiser. I know the difference between what I worked with last year (Most spinners would have thrown it away right from the start) compared with some very nice back fleece that she let me have this year.
I have already discarded a small bag of the sorted fleece that last year I was willing to work with.

Lisa here today , I am Diane's niece . I am staying with my Aunt and Uncle for a few days( I am taking a much needed sabbatical ). I love spending time here just as much as my children do. My favorite thing to do is collect eggs though it is not easy to gather them when they have been laid behind the goat shelter, I gave my Aunt a laugh though , watching me contort my almost middle aged, rather large body, trying to get them out .

I have had such a good time here and have had many laughs . I have fallen in love with Sam the Greyhound , he greets me with his toothy grin and snapping jaw and he has completely captured my heart.

Aunt die, 3 dogs and myself went for a walk by a river and man made lake and it was gorgeous . I took lots of pictures but am only able to access a few , I will post some . I also tried to take a pic down under the rabbit house to see if I can see any new babies . I couldn't get far enough in the burrow to see them , I did take pics of the last batch and of course they are very sweet .

I have enjoyed being here very much but I am also looking forward to going home to my husband , 5 kids, 6 bunnies and my dog.

Have a great day !!!!!

No picture to add today. Batteries need replacing in the camera and I haven't been out to buy more.

Saw a snake in the yard a couple of days ago. First one I have seen this year. We see a lot in the summer. Good thing I don't mind snakes, the boys, (our grandsons) love to catch them and of course have to bring them right to your face to show them off.!

I found a dozen or so duck eggs yesterday behind the goat shelter. Our niece gathered them up for me and I have put them in the incubator. It wasn't a nest so don't think I stole them from under a duck!
They take about 35 days to incubate so will let you know if any hatch.

What lovely weather we are having.
Everything is looking so good outside. The trees are nice and green the flowers are growing and even the mud puddles are drying up.










Walking by the creek is always nice but when the weather is good it is such a treat to be down there.

Took Simon the rabbit into the vet this morning to be neutered..
It is less expensive to have the male done and not as invasive a surgery as it is for the female.
Apart from Winnie there are two other females running lose. They will became mature enough to breed soon so thought it was time to put a stop to the rabbit explosion around here.
I have four babies to find homes for at the moment and I think Winnie has more hidden away somewhere, they should be ready to go in a month or so. Hopefully that will be the end of our rabbit growth.

We had two ducks go missing in the last little while. One of them showed up again a couple of days ago none the worst for wear. Where she has been will always remain a mystery I am sure!

I have started digging over the ground in the shrub garden.
It is nice to have every one enclosed again away from the flowering shrubs that I am trying to grow.
The goats were the worst offenders but ducks and chicken didn't help by getting in there.
Finally the new growth is not being eaten so I hope this year to have a bit of color in the yard.